AEW - From The Beginning | Volume One: Ch 1-12

[CakeWalker]

Chapter Twelve - Part One

With Utami Hayashishita the winner of the Eliminator Tournament, she would be in the knowledge that she would be the woman to challenge Priestley for the Women’s World Championship at Fall Brawl - in what was now Bea’s third reign as the champion. Utami would make it clear that she intended on ending Priestley’s third reign before it was able to gain any traction and would make it clear that unlike Venom Banks she actually intended on being more than just an overhyped transitional champion, but that she had really intention on setting the division on fire as a member of JPN-gun. Priestley in a separate promo would make it clear that she had been heavily impressed in the manner that Hayashishita had commanded herself through the tournament and gladly welcomed a challenge who was capable of holding their head above water without having to tread water to do so. The following week Utami would team up with Shida with the JPN-gun pairing claiming a solid victory over Oedo Tai (Angelina Love & Bea Priestley).

On the next week’s show Priestley would cut a heartfelt promo in which she would make it clear that she would finally offer KAIRI a shot at her championship and that unlike their previous meeting this match would be contested for right down the middle. The match would prove to be an intense contest, until Priestley would lock KAIRI in an armbar. The match referee would totally ignore the fact that KAIRI’s feet were breaking the ropes, and instead would call for the bell as KAIRI would seem to pass out. After the match, Hayashishita would slide into the ring and tackle Priestley to the floor with the two women fighting in the ring - with the fans eager to finally see both champion and challenger face off at Fall Brawl. The contest would be quite the spectacle, but it would be the challenger who would forge her destiny by nailing Priestley with the Argentine Backbreaker to finish off Bea and become the new champion - with the entirety of JPN-gun coming out to the ring to congratulate Utami on her victory.

The two men would agree to do battle once again at Halloween Havoc - with the pair agreeing to do battle in a Steel Cage. To add an extra layer of spice to the contest, both women would add extra stipulations to the contest. If Hayashishita lost then JPN-gun would have to dissolve - whilst if Priestley lost then she would not be able to challenge for the Women’s World Championship for a period of 365 days following Halloween Havoc. In the build up an eight-woman tag team match would take place in which Oedo Tai (Priestley, Love & The Iconic Duo) would claim a win over JPN-gun - that would put Bea in seemingly great spirits ahead of her clash with Utami. Both women would battle in a tough contest, and the confines of the Steel Cage meant that neither woman was able to get help from either of their respective stablemates. In another high caliber contest, it would be Hayashishita who would better her counterpart to retain the Women’s Championship and in the same stroke putting Priestley into an exile of sorts for the next 365 days.​

 

[CakeWalker]

Chapter Twelve - Part Two

Will Ospreay and Tetsyua Naito would bump into each other backstage, with Will making it clear that he and Tetsuya might not have always seen eye to eye - but he very much wanted to shake Naito’s hand after he had claimed an impressive victory over Bullet Club’s leader Tyler Black. Naito would make it clear that he had no interest in shaking hands with Ospreay, and was far more interested in getting his hands on the AEW World Championship. Ospreay would laugh off this suggestion and make it clear that Naito hadn’t earned the right to challenge for the belt. Later that episode a masked man wearing Bullet Club gear from head to toe would blindside Ospreay with a baseball bat strike to the back of the head before fleeing the scene of the crime.

The next week, Ospreay would cut an emotionally charged promo making it clear that it didn’t matter if he had actually been attacked by one of Black’s Bullet Club stooges or if Naito had taken part in some sort of deception in his attack last week, because the follow-up of the attack were going to be same. Ospreay would make it clear that he intended on giving the fans wanted, and that was a match between himself and Naito - but that once he was done with ‘Senor Tranquillo’ the K.D.S. were coming for the Bullet Club with the intention of creating a fracture in the group so shattering that Tyler Black would have no choice but to abdicate his position as leader of the group. In some high profile booking, Ospreay would team up with CM Punk to take on Naito & Nakamura in what would be seen as somewhat of a dream match with four very different man battling under the same spotlight with Ospreay nailing Nakamura with the StormBreaker to end the contest. At Fall Brawl, the two men would feature in a great contest only for a botched spot occur when both men would fall from the turnbuckle and crash down onto the floor below - with the match official ruling that both men had been knocked out from the impact and ruling the match a No Contest.

A few more weeks of tension would take place between both men, until a second match would be booked to take place once again between Naito and Ospreay. The match would just as good as the first, but neither man would suffer from the elements with Ospreay retaining the belt after finishing of Tetsuya with this opponent’s finishing move Destino - which would result in Ospreay getting even more heat from the crowd for the sheer disrespect he had shown his opponent despite winning the contest and remaining the champion.​

 

[CakeWalker]

Chapter Twelve - Part Three

Punk would make it clear that his saga with Kenny Omega had served an important purpose for his future in AEW, and that was that he had a desire to claim a victory every previous World Champion to prove he was capable of beating the very best that this company and he had now ticked Omega off that list. Punk would make it clear that he intended on clashing with both Shinsuke Nakamura and PAC before he considered looking above them and battling for the big belt. Before he could say anything else, he would find himself being interrupted by Shinsuke who would make it clear that there would be no parade for Punk because he had absolutely no chance of beating him in singles competition.

CM Punk would feature in a number of documentary promo pieces over the next few weeks- talking about the reasons why he had decided to return to pro wrestling after so many years in a self-imposed exile. Ospreay would team up with CM Punk to take on Naito & Nakamura in what would be seen as somewhat of a dream match with four very different man battling under the same spotlight with Ospreay nailing Nakamura with the StormBreaker to end the contest. At Fall Brawl it would be Punk who would claim an impressive victory over Nakamura, after the match Shinsuke would refuse to shake hands with Punk - that would leave CM Punk looking visibly annoyed by the gesture. In the weeks that followed it was clear that the situation between both men would not be settled, until they fought again with a match being booked to face each other in Falls Count Anywhere Match.​

 

[CakeWalker]

Chapter Twelve - Part Four

With the Good Brothers in control of the Openweight Tag Team Championships, they would use Blood Disco to act as gatekeepers - but ELP and Dr. Death wouldn’t be very effective as 5&6 would claim a victory over the representatives of the Bullet Club. After the match, Karl Anderson and Doc Gallows would appear from the back and make it clear that “5” Alan Angels and Sixpentico were the biggest bunch of nerds and that it was hard to believe that the two men had ever been the champions. A week later the Good Brothers would defend the belt against a challenging team of Reynolds & Silver - in what was a clear attempt of sending a message to the Beaver Boys Dark Order counterparts.

Doc Gallow would cut a promo where he would make it clear that if Alan Angels was able to beat him then he and Karl Anderson would give 5&6 a rematch for the title. Chris Jericho would get involved, much to Gallows annoyance and confirm that the match was irrelevant because he had already spoken to management and a rematch for the Openweight title had already been scheduled for Fall Brawl. Nonetheless, Angels and Gallows would face off with Dark Order’s #5 claiming the singles win. The solo victory would seem to give 5&6 the momentum the pair needed that would see Angels and Sixpentico win the contest and become the champions for the second time in their AEW careers.

5&6 with Jericho continuing as the voice for the team would continue to prove themselves to be fighting champions and successfully defended the belts three times in the build up to Halloween Havoc with wins of The Monsters, Caza Salvaje & The Good Brothers. After the third defense, Jericho would cut a promo in which he would make it clear that “5” Alan Angels & Sixpentico had become the shining light within the Dark Order and that these two men were the true leaders within the group and the sooner that the rest of the Dark Order accepted this fact - the sooner the group would rightfully elevate itself up the card.​

 

[CakeWalker]

Chapter Twelve - Part Five

Dangerous Tekkers would make it clear that the time for nonsense was over and that moving forward they would instill value and prestige into the championship belt in a way that previous champions had been nothing but imbeciles and peasant folk - with ZSJ making it clear that he and Taichi were cut from different cloth and that they were the true kings of wrestling. Later that night the Briscoes would claim a win over Iron Blood to become the new number one contender for the titles. This would lead to a post-match confrontation between both teams who were chomping at the bit to face each other at Fall Brawl with it being clear that a straight one on one tag team contest was a really exciting prospect for the fans to enjoy.

Over the next few weeks the two would involve themselves in a number of scuffles, but in between they would actually find time to meet in two singles matches - Jay would claim a win over Taichi, whilst ZSJ would defeat Mark. At Fall Brawl both teams featured in an exciting contest, showing exactly why they were two of the best teams in the world - but it would be Tekkers who would retain their belts. Also at Fall Brawl - the Guerrillas of Destiny would win the Casino Tag Team Battle Royale. At Halloween Havoc the champions would take on the Guerrillas of Destiny who had earned the right to face them after winning the Casino Battle Royale - but it would be the combination of Taichi and ZSJ who would claim the win and retain the world tag team titles in the process.​

 

[CakeWalker]

Chapter Twelve - Part Six

The feud between KENT and Cody would continue and despite the fact the KENTA had retained the belt - Cody would make it clear that he was far from finished with KENTA and if All Out had show him anything it was that the TNT Championship was a prize that needed to be in the possession of Bullet Club. The next week Bullet Club (Cody & Blood Disco) would claim a solid six-man tag team match over Darkness Club (KENTA, Tama Tonga & Hikuelo) - following the win Cody would make it clear that KENTA would give him another shot at the belt next week, unless he was some sort of coward.

Insults were clearly enough to goad KENTA into a title match, with the pair clashing for the belt a second time, but once again KENTA would reign supreme. Cody wouldn’t take the loss lightly though, as he would proceed to lay out KENTA after the match by smashing the TNT Championship in the back of KENTA before smashing him into the canvas with the Cross Rhodes. KENTA with blood running down his face would make it clear that this wasn’t about the title anymore, but respect of Cody’s lack of it as he would inform everyone that he and Cody would compete for a third time for the TNT Championship in a Strap Match. The match would be such a draw, that it would actually be the featured as a the main-event for the Fall Brawl event, but once again it would be KENTA who would retain the belt to claim a third victory in a row over Cody that was considered as one of the best matches of 2021.

The next evening KENTA would cut a promo about his intentions only for the lights in the arena to go out - when they were turned back on again KENTA would be on his back out cold and Cody would be lying on top of him with a random referee calling for the ring bell before making a quick count in a clear screw job that had caused the title to change hands.​

 

[CakeWalker]

Chapter Twelve - Part Seven

Kaiju Death Squad would see James Storm and ‘Hangman’ Adam Page announce that moving forward they would be working as a tag team pairing under the moniker ‘Cowboy Shit’ but the team would make it clear that they didn’t have actual aspirations of becoming tag champions but rather the union was built on the basis of creating a strong Bullet Club.

It would be announced that Halloween Havoc would play host to faction warfare between the Bullet Club and the Kaiju Death Squad anad that a series of matches would take place between members of both factions. At the start of the event, Shinsuke Nakamura would cut a promo in which he would be revealed as the newest member of the Bullet Club and make it clear that he was going to terminate CM Punk this evening and offer him as a tribute to Tyler Black.

Gabriel Kidd would claim a victory in singles action over El Phantasmo, which would be followed up by the Good Brothers claiming a tag team victory over Cowboy Shit (Storm & ‘Hangman’) which would result in both factions having one win apiece. In the first championship match between both groups, Cody would successfully retain the TNT Championship by smashing a steel chair over Batista’s head to seal him a victory in the first blood match. The Falls Count Anywhere match between CM Punk and Nakamura would be an epic contest, but it would be Punk who would continue to show his dominance since signing with the AEW - by claiming the victory.

After the contest, Punk would make it clear that he was a direct opposite to Nakamura in every way - and on that basis alone he was claiming this win as a win for the K.D.S. as he would announce himself as the newest member of the Kaiju Murder Squad. The final match of the evening wouldn’t just be for the AEW World Championship in a Dog Collar Match between Will Ospreay and Tyler Black - but it would also be the deciding match in the series between both factions. Black and Ospreay would hold nothing back in a truly excellent match. Ospreay would claim the win by hitting Black with the OsCutter to win the contest and retain the World Championship. After the match, Ospreay would make it clear that things were far from being done between K.D.S. and the Bullet Club - and that this was only the beginning of the war.​

 

[CakeWalker]

Chapter Twelve - Part Eight

After All Out, Venom Banks would be clearly frustrated at the fact that she had lost the Women’s World Championship so early on into her reign - but would make the point that nothing in life was certain or guaranteed and that she was only going to grow from her own misfortune. Banks would make the point that there was no doubt that Bea Priestley was single handedly one of the greatest wrestlers she had ever stood in the same ring as - so to even have claimed one victory over her was an impressive feat on its own and that one day she intended on becoming the champion again. However, Venom would make the point that following the Eliminator Tournament - there were eight new women on the roster some who she knew better than others, and there were a few opponents that she very much wanted to share the ring with. One of these women Venom would reveal she wanted to face was Kagetsu.

The two women would battle in a marvel of a contest, with both women pushing the other to their limit and with it clear that both women were massively determined to get a win over the other with it being Kagetsu who would claim the win by hitting her signature Ebisu Drop (Sitout scoop slam piledriver); After the match, Banks and Kagetsu would seem to exchange words of kindness and shake hands before Venom would request a microphone. Banks would make it clear that she didn’t feel that one match was enough - and instead would suggest that both women compete in a best of seven series, with Kagetsu having a 1-0 lead in the series.

Leading up to Halloween Havoc, Kagetsu would claim a second victory in the series before Venom Banks would level up the tally by claiming two wins in a row tying the scores at 2-2 going into Halloween Havoc - where Banks would claim a hat-trick of wins to take control of the series for the very first time. Kagetsu would even up the scores to 3-3 on Dynamite a few weeks later, with both women agreeing to have the deciding match at Full Gear. ​

 

[CakeWalker]

Chapter Twelve - Part Nine

​

Pool​	A​	B​	C​	D​
1​	Vikingo​	Darby Allin ​	Batista​	ZSJ​
2​	Karl Anderson​	Kenny Omega​	Tom Lawlor​	EVIL​
3​	SANADA​	Tyler Black​	WALTER​	CM Punk​
4​	Cody Rhodes​	Gresham​	ELP​	Tanahashi​
5​	Nakamura​	DDP​	Hammerstone​	PAC​
6​	Jay Briscoe​	Hangman​	Naito​	KENTA​
7​	Gabriel Kidd​	Ospreay​	PCO​	Tama Tonga​
8​	Dragon Lee​	James Storm​	Jay Lethal​	Jeff Cobb​

W1: ROUND ONE
GROUP A
Dragon Lee def. Vikingo - Gabriel Kidd def. Kark Anderson
SANADA def. Jay Briscoe - Cody Rhodes def. Shinsuke Nakamura

GROUP B
James Storm def. Darby Allin - Will Ospreay def. Kenny Omega
Tyler Black def. Hangman - DDP def. Gresham

GROUP C
Batista def. Jay Lethal - Tom Lawlor def. PCO
Tetsuya Naito def. WALTER - El Phantasmo def. Hammerstone

GROUP D
ZSJ def. Jeff Cobb - EVIL def. Tama Tonga
CM Punk def. KENTA - PAC def. Tanahashi


W1: ROUND TWO
GROUP A
Karl Anderson def. Vikingo - Gabriel Kidd def. SANADA
Cody Rhodes def. Jay Briscoe - Dragon Lee def. Nakamura

GROUP B
Kenny Omega def. Darby Allin - Ospreay def. Tyler Black
Gresham def. Hangman - James Storm

GROUP C
Tom Lawlor def. Batista - WALTER def. PCO
Naito def. ELP - Hammerstone def. Jay Lethal

GROUP D
ZSJ def. EVIL - CM Punk def. Tama Tonga
Tanahashi def. KENTA - PAC def. Jeff Cobb


W2: ROUND THREE
GROUP A
SANADA def. Vikingo - Dragon Lee def. Karl Anderson
Cody Rhodes def. Gabriel Kidd - Jay Briscoe def. Nakamura

GROUP B
Tyler Black def. Darby Allin - Kenny Omega def. James Storm
Ospreay def. Gresham - Hangman def. DDP

GROUP C
WALTER def. Batista - Tom Lawlor def. Jay Lethal
PCO def. ELP - Hammerstone def. Naito

GROUP D
CM Punk def. ZSJ - Jeff Cobb def. EVIL
Tama Tonga def. Tanahashi - KENTA def. PAC


W2: ROUND FOUR
GROUP A
Vikingo def. Cody Rhodes - Karl Anderson def. SANADA
Nakamura def. Gabriell Kidd - Dragon Lee def. Jay Briscoe

GROUP B
Gresham def. Darby Allin - Tyler Black def. Kenny Omega
Ospreay def. DDP - James Storm def. Hangman

GROUP C
ELP def. Batista - WALTER def. Tom Lawlor
Hammerstone def. PCO - Jay Lethal def. Naito

GROUP D
ZSJ vs. Tanahashi - Time Limit - CM Punk def. EVIL
PAC def. Tama Tonga - KENTA def. Jeff Cobb

​

Dragon Lee​	8​	Ospreay​	8​	Tom Lawlor​	6​	CM Punk​	8​
Cody Rhodes​	6​	James Storm​	6​	WALTER​	6​	PAC​	6​
Gabriel Kidd​	4​	Tyler Black​	6​	Hammerstone​	6​	ZSJ​	5​
Karl Anderson​	4​	Gresham​	4​	Naito​	4​	KENTA​	5​
SANADA​	4​	Kenny Omega​	4​	ELP​	4​	Tanahashi​	3​
Vikingo​	2​	DDP​	2​	Batista​	2​	EVIL​	2​
Nakamura​	2​	Hangman​	2​	Jay Lethal​	2​	Tama Tonga​	2​
Jay Briscoe​	2​	Darby Allin​	0​	PCO​	2​	Jeff Cobb​	2​

W3: ROUND FIVE
GROUP A
Nakamura def. Vikingo - Karl Anderson def. Cody Rhodes
Dragon Lee def. SANADA - Jay Brisoce def. Gabriel Kidd

GROUP B
Darby Allin def. DDP - Kenny Omega def. Gresham
Tyler Black def. James Storm - Ospreay def. Hangman

GROUP C
Batista def. Hammerstone - Tom Lawlor def. ELP
WALTER def. Jay Lethal - Naito def. PCO

GROUP D
ZSJ def. PAC - Tanahashi def. EVIL
CM Punk def. Jeff Cobb - KENTA def. Tama Tonga

W3: ROUND SIX

GROUP A
Jay Brisce def. Vikingo - Nakamura def. Karl Anderson
Cody Rhodes def. SANADA - Dragon lee def. Gabriel Kidd

GROUP B
Darby Allin def. Hangman - Kenny Omega def. DDP
Gresham def. Tyler Back - Ospreay def. James Storm

GROUP C
Batista def. Naito - Hammerstone def. Tom Lawlor
ELP def. WALTER - Jay Lethal def. PCO

GROUP D
ZSJ def. KENTA - PAC def. EVIL
Tanahashi def. CM Punk - Jeff Cobb def. Tama Tonga
​

Dragon Lee​	12​	Ospreay​	12​	Tom Lawlor​	8​	CM Punk​	10​
Cody Rhodes​	8​	Kenny Omega​	8​	WALTER​	8​	ZSJ​	9​
Karl Anderson​	6​	James Storm​	6​	Hammerstone​	8​	PAC​	8​
Nakamura​	6​	Tyler Black​	6​	Naito​	6​	KENTA​	7​
Jay Briscoe​	6​	Gresham​	6​	ELP​	6​	Tanahashi​	7​
Gabriel Kidd​	4​	Darby Allin​	4​	Batista​	6​	Jeff Cobb​	4​
SANADA​	4​	DDP​	2​	Jay Lethal​	4​	EVIL​	2​
Vikingo​	2​	Hangman​	2​	PCO​	2​	Tama Tonga​	2​

W4: ROUND SEVEN
GROUP A
Vikingo def. Gabriel Kidd - Jay Briscoe def. Karl Anderson
Nakamura def. SANADA - Cody Rhodes def. Dragon Lee

GROUP B
Ospreay def. Darby Allin - Hangman def. Kenny Omega
Tyler Black def. DDP - Gresham def. James Storm


GROUP C
PCO def. Batista - Tom Lawlor def. Naito
WALTER def. Hammerstone - Jay Lethal def. ELP

GROUP D
Tama Tonga def. ZSJ - KENTA def. EVIL
CM Punk vs. PAC - Time Limit Draw - Tanahashi def. Jeff Cobb

​

Dragon Lee​	12​	Ospreay​	14​	WALTER​	10​	CM Punk​	11​
Cody Rhodes​	10​	Kenny Omega​	8​	Tom Lawlor​	10​	ZSJ​	9​
Nakamura​	8​	Tyler Black​	8​	Hammerstone​	8​	PAC​	9​
Jay Briscoe​	8​	Gresham​	8​	Naito​	6​	KENTA​	9​
Karl Anderson​	6​	James Storm​	6​	ELP​	6​	Tanahashi​	9​
Gabriel Kidd​	4​	Darby Allin​	4​	Batista​	6​	Jeff Cobb​	4​
SANADA​	4​	Hangman​	4​	Jay Lethal​	6​	EVIL​	2​
Vikingo​	4​	DDP​	2​	PCO​	4​	Tama Tonga​	4​

ZSJ wins Group D tiebreaker with wins over all three people in joint 2nd.

Omega vs. Tyler Black vs. Gresham booked as tiebreaker.

GROUP B - TIE BREAKER
Jonathan Gresham def. Tyler Black v. Kenny Omega

Top Two from each pool will feature in the Quarter, Semi and Final at Full Gear.​

 

[CakeWalker]

Chapter Twelve Finale

Falls Count Anywhere
Tyler Black def. Batista - 4.75

United States of America Championship - Ladder Match
Hammerstone (c) def. Jacob Fatu - 4.75

Openweight Tag Team Championship - Special Guest Referee
5&6 [Alan Angels & Sixpentico] (c) w/ Chris Jericho def. Good Brothers [Karl Anderson & Doc Gallows] - 5.0

Tables Match
Kagetsu def. Venom Banks - 5.75
[4-3 to face Utami later that night]

QUARTER FINALS
Will Ospreay def. Cody Rhodes - 4.75

WALTER def. ZSJ - 5.0

CM Punk def. Tom Lawlor - 5.25

Dragon Lee def. Jonathan Gresham - 4.5

AEW World Women’s Championship
Utami Hayashishita (c) def. Kagetsu - 5.25

SEMI FINALS
WALTER def. Will Ospreay - 5.0

Dragon Lee def. CM Punk - 5.0

Final - IWGP Heavyweight Championship
WALTER def. Dragon Lee - 5.0​